Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, system, and control method therefor, and particularly suitably used in transmission/reception of data for remote support via a network between a supporting device and a supported device.
Description of the Related Art
As the ways of using products and measures to handle troubles become more complicated, users more often ask questions directly to call centers of manufacturers to obtain answers. In order to appropriately and promptly handle troubles, a remote support system is proposed that includes an image forming apparatus and a fault management server of a call center that manages error information of the image forming apparatus. In such a remote support system, an image forming apparatus to be supported, and an information processing apparatus of a call center that supports the image forming apparatus are often inside fire walls of their companies, respectively. Therefore, in order to allow an image forming apparatus and an information processing apparatus to communicate for the purpose of remote support or the like, it has been proposed that a relay server for relaying communication between these apparatuses is provided in the Internet (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-29922). Providing such a relay server enables communication between apparatuses inside respective fire walls.
In the prior art, however, after an authentication of an image forming apparatus for receiving remote support is performed by a relay server, a user of the image forming apparatus has to perform an operation for selecting an area (for receiving support) in the relay server (for example, an operation for selecting a link on a Web screen). This makes operations by the user of the image forming apparatus complicated. Further, an information processing apparatus of a call center has to search for a device to support. Therefore, this also makes the operations by the operator of the information processing apparatus complicated.